Over The Fence
by GirlOfMyOwnWorld
Summary: (Short story of Cassaiden for a good friend's birthday. :D Happy birthday, Em, and enjoy this present!) Cassie Rose and Aiden Mercer. Two unlikely lovers from unlikely beginnings to unlikely ends. What happens when the two of them move to the same town in a new world to start a new life for themselves? (T for paranoia)
1. Chapter One

Cassie Rose grunted as she slid the dark brown chest across the floor. It was nighttime, meaing one thing- the monsters were out. Therefore, Cassie had to get everything in the house she just moved into that same day. She didn't want any people stealing anything, even though there were mobs out.

Across the street, there was a small blond boy sitting on the grass, simply lying down and looking up at the stars. Cassie sighed. This kid was going to get himself killed if he continued to lie out there in the night.

The redhead jogged across the street, leaning over the cobblestone fence.

"Kid- hey, kid!" she exclaimed, making the child wake up. With a groggy groan, he sat up. "You should get inside. It's nighttime, and the monsters will be out any minute." Cassie warned, no longer leaning over the fence but simply standing behind.

"Mama's a fighter. She can protect me no matter what, Mrs. Opaque-" It was only then that the boy realized that it was not the kind old woman next door to his home, but the new young adult who had moved in only that day. "Who are you?"

"My name's Cassie Rose, I'm uh.. New to the neighborhood." Cassie explained, glancing around her. There was a zombie slowly advancing at her to her left and she took out her axe.

"I'm Emmett." The kid stood, dusting off his pants. He notices the zombie approaching Cassie on her left. "Cassie, uh…" It was quite clear the child hadn't faced a monster head on before.

"Don't worry, kid. I can take care of myself." Cassie got her axe from her inventory and flipped it in her hand easily before running towards the zombie. She used the fence as leverage and lept into the air, burying her axe into it's head. It disappeared with a poof and the puff of smoke rose into the dark night sky.

She landed on her feet swiftly, panting.

"I better get home. Get inside, Emmett, please."

"O-Okay." Emmett nodded, turning around and going inside quickly.

Cassie turned around and continued to drag the large chest up the sidewalk and into her new home. She grunted with every step, having picked up one end and leaving the other to drag along the sidewalk.

There was the pitter-patter of feet running down the sidewalk. A grunt and the fall of a monster followed, but Cassie didn't bother to look.

"Hey, you need help?" Cassie looked up to the person standing at the fence gate.

"No, no, I'm fine." she managed, grunting again as she dragged the chest across the sidewalk. The person at the gates groaned and hopped over the wooden fence easily. He picked up the other end of the chest and that too Cassie off guard, making her stumble backwards a little. "I thought I told you I didn't need help!" Cassie hissed, glaring at the celery-eyed boy. His hair was so mussled from running all day long.

"Look, please- let me help. We wouldn't want a pretty girl dying to the monsters out here." The man winked, making Cassie roll her eyes.

"Who are we talking about here? You?"

The two had finally gotten the large chest into the house.

"Well, gee, a 'thank you' would have been-" The man cut himself off, having set the chest down and looking up at Cassie.

-/

"- nice…" Aiden managed to say, but it came out more of a whisper rather than a statement. The redheaded woman he had volunteered to help finish moving in next door to himself turned out to be… extremely good looking…

"I didn't ask for your help, but thank you anyways." The woman huffed onto her glasses, wiping off the lenses with her sweater sleeve. "Now please leave. I don't quite like having guys in my house when it's dark."

"Uh.. oh- oh, yeah! Uh, sure, yeah, no- no worries. I-I can go." Aiden stammered out quickly, going to the door. There was the clap of thunder and it began to rain.

-/

Cassie turned back around as soon as she heard the thunder, but the male was already gone.

"I, uh… never even got his name."


	2. Chapter Two

Aiden was tending to the small garden he was making for himself when a shadow rushed over him. He looked up to see who was blocking the sun out.

It was the new girl from next door.

"Need any help, veggie boy?" she asks, a small smile on her face at her nickname. (At least it was better than "White Pumpkin.")

"Oh, uh.. No, not really. But thanks, anyways." Aiden stood and wiped the sweat from his forehead. Cassie chuckles, leaning against the wooden fence. Aiden joined her. "So, uh.. Nice town so far, huh?"

"Well, nice people and all so far, so yes." Cassie winked at Aiden when she said 'nice people,' making the brunet blush a little. "Speaking of which…" Cassie stood up completely, facing Aiden. "I didn't really completely thank you for helping me out last night."

"Oh, you don't have to. I'm sure you would've done the same." Aiden shook his head, chuckling a little awkwardly.

"You sure about that?" Cassie raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms with a small smile. Aiden held a hand over his heart, mouth gaping dramatically.

"How _dare_ you." Aiden whispered in betrayal, then he and Cassie both began to laugh out loud. "Okay, fine, fine. How about a date and we call it even?"

"A- a what?" Cassie asks, her laughs having gone on longer than Aiden's and she was busy trying to calm down to hear what Aiden had said.

"A date. And we call it even for me helping you out last night."

"I uh… what's, uhm… what's a date?" Aiden blink at Cassie's reply.

"You don't know what a date is?" Aiden's eyebrows raised.

"Not… really…" Cassie chuckled awkwardly, rubbing her neck.

"Well, all you have to do is say 'yes,' and I'll take you on the best date anyone's been on." Aiden grinned, getting a little _too_ overconfident with himself.

"Uh… sure…" She raised a skeptical eyebrow and Aiden did a small 'yes!' while pumping his fist.

"Just look as you are and meet me right here. I can get something set." Aiden grinned.


	3. Chapter Three

"Emmett?" Cassie asked as the little boy and the man with the same blond hair (she presumed this man was the boy's father) approached her. The man carried a chest easily, laughing as his son went to greet Cassie.

"Cassie!" Emmett leapt up for a hug, taking the redhead off guard.

"Hey, Emmett!" Cassie laughed, swinging the boy around once before setting him back down.

"Thanks for sending him inside last night. My wife still hasn't let me hear the last of it, though." The male stated in joking manner, making Cassie laugh. (Hey, the dude was married so he was obviously off limits. That, and his wife would be after her without a doubt.)

"Oh, uh, it wasn't a problem at all, uh…"

"Just call me Blue." The blond man smiled. "My wife and our daughter are off at a birthday party, but she says she'd love to invite you over for lunch sometime. You could meet her and Petra then."

"Petra?"

"Yeah, our daughter." Blue nodded, smiling.

"Oh- oh, uh, sorry." Cassie cleared her throat. "I actually once lived in a different world before coming here- uh, one of my friends in the world, their name was Petra, so that's why…" The rose-headed woman let out an awkward laugh as she trailed off.

"Well, I'm sure our daughter didn't wander off to a different world." Blue joked again, making Cassie chuckle.

"So, uh, not that I don't like having you two over here, but was there something you needed?"

"Yes, actually. My wife just wanted me to give you these as a little "welcome to the neighborhood" gift. Although it's more a care package rather than a gift."

"Thank you." Cassie sent Blue a smile, and he smiled back. She then looked down at Emmett. "Are you a fan of cats?"


	4. Chapter Four

"Ah! I win, that was a blush!" Cassie threw her hands in the air victoriously, laughing. Aiden's whole face was red, and it progressively grew down to his neck and up to his ears. He had covered his mouth, his eyes widen open as he just stared ahead. _That.. that was a fantastic trick she used._ He thought.

And all Cassie did was kiss his cheek after thanking him for paying for dinner. It had caught the brunet completely off guard, but it also made him the loser that night.

Well, there was that, but she also called him 'babe.' To Aiden.. That nickname was a _major_ turn-on.

"Okay, okay, that- I can't believe that was all it took to win." Cassie laughed, making Aiden blush again at the thought.

"Okay, uh- I guess I'm somewhat your slave for a week…"

"Yep. And first order-" Cassie had a sneaky grin. "Come on, stand up." Aiden did as he was told, and she motioned for him to turn around. "Piggy-back ride me all the way home."

" _The_ whole way back?"

"Yep." Her answer made Aiden groan, and he grunted as she hopped on.

"Hey, you're the one who started it." Cassie grinned, and Aiden twisted in an attempt to look behind himself to see Cassie. Sighing, he turned back forward and grabbed underneath her knees, making himself comfortable before starting on the way to their homes.

"Just don't choke me."

"Wouldn't dream of it… babe."

"Stop calling me that."

"Why? Also, what's so stiff in your inventory- ohmygod no."


	5. Chapter Five

It was another day during the week that Cassie was completely moved in. She was fully stocked on everything (food, water, supplies) so she decided to spend the day simply reading.

Her quiet time quickly ended with the door being knocked.

"Coming, I'm coming!" Cassie exclaimed as she got up from the couch. She stretched out a little, groaning in the process before going to answer the door. Blue was there with a dark-haired woman at his side. There was Emmett there as well, and he was holding the hand of a small brown-haired girl- presumably his sister, Petra. Definitely _not_ the Petra that had shut her down in the Twin Moons World. "Blue? Uh, is there anything you need?"

"Can you watch the kids? One of my friends are having their baby now and we both need to be active and there for them." Blue began to explain, but his wife quickly took over.

"I know this is a very big favor to ask, considering you've never met me or my daughter before, but this will hopefully be the only time we throw this responsibility at you." Suddenly, she went quiet. "Maybe Aiden can help. I'll have him come over to help you out, if that's okay. He already babysat Petra once, but Emmett isn't familiar with him, so it's a win-win since you already know Emmett but haven't met Petra yet-"

"Hey, hey, it's okay, I got them covered, I think the help from Aiden would be nice, so if you have the time to send him over on your way to your friend's- please?"

"We will- thank you so much, we won't throw this on you so suddenly again."

"I don't mind at all. I didn't have anything to do anyways." Cassie shrugged as Emmett and Petra walked into the house. Emmett tugged his little sister alone in hopes that he could find the kitty for her. (The boy had been going on and on about Winslow back at home and it made Petra want to see him.)

"Thank you!" The mother of the two children exclaimed. She and Blue turned and left. "They already had lunch, so no need to feed them until dinner!" she called behind her as she began to converse with Blue in a low voice. Cassie closed the door, keeping an eye out for Aiden if he was home to come over and help out.

-/

"I heard there was a party going on in here and we all know the party don't start til I walk in-" Aiden's voice carried on through the house, making Petra giggle. Cassie also laughed, making Emmett grin. He and Petra were seated on the ground, playing with Winslow while Cassie was reading a story to herself.

"We're in here!" Cassie called, and heard the door shut. It took Aiden only a moment to get into the room that Cassie and the two kiddos were in.

"Awh, hey, I haven't met you before. I'm Aiden. I babysat for your sister before while your parents took you to the doctors. How's your fever holding up?" Aiden reached out, putting his hand on Emmett's forehead.

"All better. It cleared up yesterday." Emmett sent the brunet a grin, already liking him. Aiden glanced back behind him to see Petra holding her hands out to him. "Hello to you too, little warrior-" Aiden then spun towards Petra, lifting her into the air. The ceiling was high enough so "Whup, up you go!" Aiden called as he tossed the girl into the air, making her giggle. He set her back down onto the ground and went to join Cassie on the couch.

"Ahh. Finally in your presence, no longer under the slavery you've been holding me in."

"You still have two days, you know." Cassie grinned, poking his chest teasingly. "Anyways- 'little warrior?' Where'd you get that from?"

"Well, uh, one of my old friend, he has new friends and one of them's named Petra. She was known as Petra the Warrior, uh.. One of the members of the Order Of The Stone." Cassie blinked at Aiden's words.

"Wait- Order Of The Stone?"

"Yeah, they were a group of heroes back in my own world. Why, do you want a little storytime?"

"No, actually- I'm familiar with them too, even though I actually came from another world."

"Really?"

"Yeah, Twin Moons World."

"I lived in Minecraftia at first, but then after a uh… situation, in Sky Lands World, I came here. Jesse and her friends were heroes in both worlds."

"And in mine too, actually." Cassie looked up at Aiden. "Looks like this Order Of The Stone is saving lives left and right, huh?"

"I'm sure they're doing it as we speak, even." Aiden chuckles. "It's kind of hard to believe I went over the top with my jealousy, but I've always had a bad temper. I'm just glad I had some time to uh… work on it."

"I also had some time to work on my wrongs. The Twin Moons World, the world I lived in, I was trapped there for some time because someone else had the flint and steel I needed to get home, and I made some bad decisions in that process."

"What kind of bad decisions?"

"Decisions I don't really want anyone to know about." Cassie glanced down at the kids, nodding towards them. (Luckily, the two were too immersed in Winslow to be paying any attention.)

"Oh." was all Aiden said, nodding as he trailed off.

-/

It had taken the parents of the two children all day to help with the delivery of a new child- not that Cassie and Aiden minded.

"And that is the story of the princess with the petals of a bloody rose…" Cassie yawned as she closed the book. She looked down to find Emmett's head on her lap while Aiden also leant against her, Petra in his arms. The two children were bundled up in the only blankets Cassie had, making him have to lean against Cassie for warmth. The same from her to him.

"Get some sleep, Cass. I'll keep an ear out for their parents." Aiden smiled, and he was quickly met with soft snores from the woman behind him.

It was only an hour or two afterwards that Aiden spotted Blue peeking through the window. Aiden nodded towards the door, saying they could come in. Blue nodded, and the door opened moments later. Sammie and Blue crept into the room. The sight of the two younger adults with Emmett and Petra in their arms made the mother smile.

"You know, you and Cassie would make great parents, even though you two aren't together." the mother mentioned to Aiden as she lifted Petra from his grasp.

"Sammie's a matchmaker, don't mind her." Blue rolls his eyes as he lifts Emmett from Cassie.

"Well, she's not wrong, so…" Aiden gave a small one-sided shrug.

"Thank you, so much. We'll have to find some way to repay you."

"I'd like to babysit both these kids with her again sometime, though. So if you and Blue have something to do, Cass and I can watch them. They're amazing to be with for even just a few hours." Aiden chuckles. "How'd the delivery go?"

"She and the baby are okay, thank you." Blue chuckled, making Aiden smile.

"That's good." Aiden sighed. "Well, I'm going to get Cassie to bed, then I'll head off home. Can you wait for me at the door? I don't want you to have to run into any mobs and be defenseless since you're carrying your kids."


	6. Chapter Six

It was now months later, and Cassie and Aiden had been babysitting more and more often for people around town.

There was finally one night when Cassie and Aiden were alone. The parents had taken their kiddos home early, and they were waiting until Blue brought Emmett and Petra over.

"So, uh… how did you meet Jesse and her New Order of the Stone?" Aiden wasn't a fan of silences, especially awkward ones, so he attempted to make some conversation.

"Well, it was back in the old Rose Manor- my home for a short while until my aunt died and I inherited the place. I eventually found one of her journals in the library and it turns out that we didn't live in the Twin Moon World we were in- we lived in the Old Builders world, only, uh… my aunt had us run away because she didn't like how the other Old Builders do things. I got a little angry about it, but then I began to aim to get the portal key from our world, but when I got there- everything was gone. No zombies, no spiders, no code or puzzle to complete like my aunt said in her journal… So that led me to thinking someone else took it, which led to some very bad choices that I still don't really want to say right now…"

"No, no, it's fine. I probably made even worse choices, admittedly, that I don't exactly want to confess quite yet either."

"Okay, maybe we'll say them at the same time. On three."

"Uh-"

"One, two, three-

I killed some of my friends."

"I tried to take over a whole city and killed people in.. the.. Process…" Aiden trailed off, looking at Cassie in disbelief.

"Wow... I mean, I only actually killed technically three people, but… a whole city? How did you even begin to manage that?"

"Uh, well… I had these other two friends, they still stay in that same world looking for redemption. They helped me overtake the Founder and we pretty much spawned monsters _everywhere._ " Aiden sighed. "I attempted to kill Jesse and Lukas by kicking them into the Void, but turns out, there was land down there and they came back up. I surrendered, and was taken to jail for some time. When Maya and Gill, my friends, and I were released, I was the only one looking for a fresh start, and I figured I could find that in a new world, a completely different one."

"I had the same exact mindset. I didn't want to be avoided for being a murderer, I just figured a new, fresh start would be better. It's kind of hard to say no to a fresh start, especially all that's happened to me."

"Yeah.. that was what I thought." Aiden hummed.

"You know what, let's talk about something else-"

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea, the topic's getting a bit dark- has your hair always been this red?"

"Mhmm. Natural hair color, never dyed it. Not once. There's a reason why my last name is Rose."

"Right, because you're as beautiful as a rose." Aiden nods, before realizing what he just said. "Uh…"

"Aiden did you just-"

"Pretend nothing happened." Aiden stated quickly. The door was knocked upon, making Aiden get up quickly. "Oh, look at that, Blue's here with Emmett and Petra-" he cut himself off as he exited the room.

"Aiden-" Cassie held a hand out to stop him, but she was too late. He had left and he was going to return with the blond boy and dark-haired girl. The redhead sighs, going to join Aiden at greeting their guests.

-/

Cassie yawned again, holding a sleeping Emmett in her lap. Aiden was holding a sleeping Petra in his arms again. The only think Cassie could see from that was Aiden holding a brown-haired boy- their son. Not Petra, but their own child.

The redhead couldn't help but to smile at that thought, and there was a soft knocking at the door. Carefully awakening Emmett, she motioned for Aiden to get up. With soft grunts, Aiden managed to stand tiredly and Cassie opened the door. Blue was there, a grin on his face.

"It's another boy." Blue grinned, making Cassie smile.

"I'm happy for you guys. Emmett will be happy to hear the boys outnumber the girls in your family." She joked.

"I'm sure he will, but it looks like he would prefer some sleep right now, huh buddy?" Emmett nodded from where he was. "And where's Petra?"

"Aiden's bringing her over. She's asleep, and he looks like he's about to drop as well. I might just let him crash here like a few nights ago where the parents were late." Cassie rolled her eyes at the memory.

"Ouch." Blue winced, making Cassie softly chuckle. "Anyways, I'll take these kiddos. You two better get some sleep." He added as he took Petra from Aiden's arms and Aiden only nodded, going back to Cassie's couch. Cassie followed after placing a dirt block in front of the door to prevent zombies from breaking in.

Aiden was already asleep on Cassie's couch, snoring softly. (Hey, at least it didn't sound like someone was drilling through the door.

Cassie pursed her lips in thought. He must be really uncomfortable in that position on the couch…

She poked his shoulder.

"Aiden, get up."

Since he was only freshly asleep, Aiden opened an eye.

"Whaaaat?" he whined like a little kid.

"That couch isn't comfortable, you know. You can come with me. I got a double bed in my room, we can, uh… just share."

"Fully clothed, right?" Aiden mumbled, still half asleep.

Honestly, if her face was any redder than her hair- *laughs*

"Of-of course-"

Like he was a robot, Aiden got up and went into Cassie's room, the owner following rather cautiously.

Cassie had her back turned to the bed where she could hear Aiden shifting to get into a more comfortable position. She was currently refilling Winslow's food and water bowl real quick before actually heading off to bed like she did most nights.

The redhead then went to bed, joining Aiden. She kept her distance, not exactly wanting to breaking whatever it was they had. Sure, they had gone on a few dates, but their last one was only weeks ago. They've been a little overwhelmed with babysitting and caring for themselves (like getting food and making trades and such).

Aiden hummed and reached out, patting the bed. Suddenly, Cassie felt an arm snake their way around her waist and pull her backwards.

"Uh-" Cassie began, until she felt her back meet Aiden's front.

"Shh, just go to sleep, babe…" Aiden mumbled, his arm holding her close to him.

And it was a lie to say Cassie didn't like it. :3


	7. Chapter Seven

The next morning, when Aiden woke up, he was holding something… soft. He hugged it tighter, just assuming it was a pillow, but when said "pillow" let out a sigh, he froze.

Looking down only slightly, he found some strands of brilliant red hair that could belong to only one person- Cassie Rose.

His heart began to thump faster and faster as he realized the (rather comfortable) position they were lying in, and Aiden struggled to calm himself.

"Honey, calm down." was literally all Cassie said as she leant up and pressed her lips to his.

Aiden hummed in pleasure, his eyes practically rolling into the back of his head as his arms went around her.

This certainly wasn't his first kiss, but he was still taken off guard by how well of a kisser Cassie was.

Cassie pulled away when she heard Winslow whimpering. She looked up to find Winslow lying down with his paws over his eyes.

"Oh, shush, Winslow, I'm trying to have a moment here."

"Uh, Cass-" Aiden began, and since Winslow continued to mew, Cass groaned and got up, going to his bowl to find it empty.

"Winslow, I fed you last night."

"Cassie?" Aiden began, now standing behind her. Spooked, Cassie jumped as she whirled around. Surprised by how close Aiden was to her, she backed away a little too fast and bumped into the dresser that she had Winslow's stuff set on. Her shoulder blades hurt from the impact, but she didn't have the time to groan about it because Aiden had practically sandwiched herself between him and the dresser, his lips on hers.

That moment, was the start of something BIG.

And Cassie wouldn't have started it any other way.

-/

 **Happy birthday, Blue and Emily! Hope you all enjoyed this smol ficlet.**

 **Also- did you all really think this was the end of my Cassaiden reign?**

 **There's a bonus, next!**


	8. Bonus One

Aiden handed Cassie the small bundle of dark blue.

"Are you sure you can handle all three of these kiddos while I go check out the place?"

"Yes, Aiden, I'll be fine." Cassie laughs. "The twins can take care of themselves easily. It's just this little rascal I've got to worry about." She looked down at her still-newborn son in the bundle of dark blue blankets. "Look, we'll just be walking around the main area of town- exploring the area a little bit. So uh.. Come find us when you're done, okay? Maybe we can get a special little treat in celebration of a successful move."

"Sure. You won't be very hard to miss, and neither will the little warrior over there." Aiden looked over to the redheaded boy that was his son- the elder of the twins. He and his little sister were crouched over the baby ocelot that Aiden had gotten the two for their birthday only weeks ago.

While the boy took after his mother, the girl and the baby boy in Cassie's arms took after their father with his brown hair and celery green eyes.

Aiden, meanwhile, got rid of the Magnus-themed t-shirt and instead wore a plain blue one. His jeans and shoes continued to fit him all those years later, and Cassie also got rid of the beanie and instead of the long socks with sneakers, she now had knee-high boots. Her socks still peeked over the top edges, but they were now mostly hidden.

"Alright, I'll see you later." Aiden kissed Cassie's cheek before jogging off in another direction. Cassie chuckles and rolls her eyes before heading over to where her other two children were, making sure that the boy in her arms wasn't about to cry or anything.

"Okay, kiddos, ready to go see everything Dad told you in his stories?"

"I wanna go see the Beacon first!" Cassie's daughter exclaimed. "It sounded so cool when Dad talked about it-"

"I wanna try to meet Jesse and Lukas though…" The boy interrupted, sulking a little.

"Jordan, I'm sure Jesse and Lukas are quite busy right now, but I'm also sure they would like to meet you too. Maybe not today, but sometime in the future- most definitely."

"Okay!" The redheaded boy, Jordan, nodded as he showed off a toothy grin.

"Okay." Cassie smiled, ruffling her son's red hair. "You two, stay near me, okay? I don't want a repeat of that one Market Sunday, you hear me?"

"Yes, Mama." The two children nod enthusiastically, and like the twins they are, walk away to begin their little journey of exploring the town.

-/

"Mama, looks, it's a doggy!"

"I haven't seen a puppy since Snowball!" Jordan recalled the neighbor's dog who was so white and small that he looked like a snowball. The twins go after the puppy that was running off back to it's owner, and Cassie panicked a little, chasing after them.

"Woah, hey, that may be-" She began, but when she turned the corner, she was quickly met with quite an unfamiliar sight.

There Stacy was, handing Jordan a bone to feed to the doggo, while Stampy was seated on what seemed like the countertop of a booth.

"Say, where're your parents? Kids your age shouldn't be out in a town like this alone." Stampy proceeds to ask the two children.

Heart thumping against her chest, Cassie mustered up the courage and spoke up.

"They're uh… they're my kids, Stampy." She stated simply, walking a little closer to the group.

"Cassie?!" Stacy exclaimed, making Cassie flinch backwards a little at how loud the woman was.

"I, uh… I don't believe it." Stampy began, hopping down onto the ground from where he was on the countertop.

"You probably should, considering I uh… I just moved here." Cassie began, then set off into a series of rambles. "I swear, I didn't know you guys lived here, we thought it would be a good place to raise a family-"

"We? Who's the other guy?" Stacy interrupted, crossing her arms.

"My husband and the dad of these kids, obviously." Cassie glared slightly, shifting a little.

"Look, uh, Cassie-" Cassie looked over at Stampy, who was rubbing his head sheepishly. " _I'm_ willing to give you another chance, at least, but I'm not going to forget what's happened in the past. I don't know about Stacy here, but I'm willing to give the friendship thing another shot." Cassie sighed in relief.

"Thank you Stampy. Really- it means a lot, since we're going to be seeing each other more often, as we, uh… live in the same town." Cassie looked over at Stacy. It was obvious she was going to be less forgiving, considering Lizzie was one of the ones who dies in the mansion that night and she was Stacy's best friend.

"You'll have to earn it from me. I don't do very many second chances."

"Uh, we can still be acquaintances, at least?" Cassie asks, hoping for a 'yes.'

Sure enough, Stacy nodded.

"Yeah, whatever."

"So, uh.." Stampy began, desperately wanting to change the subject, "What're the kiddo's names?" Cassie smiled in thanks, and looked down at the two kids who were still playing with the wolf.

"The boy's Jordan, and the girl's Lizzie. They're twins- 6 years old now. Their birthday was only weeks ago."

"Oh, well happy birthday, you two!" Stampy grins down at the kiddos and Lizzie was the one to look up, saying

"Thanks!"

"And the little boy in my arms here- he was born only a month ago- his name's Gill. All after old friends of ours."

"You named your daughter Lizzie?"

"Well, her original name was Elizabeth, but we decided to shorten it a little-"

"Stampy, Stacy! I didn't think you guys were gonna be-" A new voice began, not yet seeing Cassie. They only cut off at that point because they saw Cassie. The dog, their attention no longer on the twins, begins to circle the one and only Jesse.

The brown-haired male stood in place, watching the dog circle him.

"Cassie? You're here too?"

"I uh… I am. Uh…" Cassie looked down at Jordan and Lizzie. "Jordan, remember when you said you wanted to meet Jesse?" Cassie asks, glancing up at Jesse. Jordan gasped loudly.

" _That's_ him?" Jordan pointed at Jesse, the grin on his face getting larger.

"I thought he would be taller." Lizzie's nose was scrunched up a little. (She had her father's looks, but she sure had her mother's personality.) Jesse couldn't help but to laugh.

"Well, gee, _sorry_ I couldn't stretch myself up a little."

"Their father made you sound taller than you really were." Cassie mentioned, making Stampy chuckle.

"How so?"

"Bedtime stories. The stories of your achievements and everything- my husband turned them into bedtime stories." Cassie nodded.

"Really?" Jesse raised an eyebrow. "Bedtime stories. That's a bit new, actually."

"Dude, you're so cool!" Oh, nope, Jordan's in fanboy mode. "Do you still have the pickaxe from when you defeated the WitherStorm?" He asks, jumping slightly.

"I do, but I don't really have it with me right now." Jesse chuckles down at the red-haired boy.

"That's Jordan, the girl's Lizzie, and this little guy is Gill." Cassie reintroduced her kids.

"Hey, love, it went a lot shorter than I thought." Cassie heard Aiden approaching the group from her right, between two houses. He kissed her cheek. "I see you're already making some- Jesse."

" _Aiden's_ the dad?!" Jesse exclaimed in surprise. Sure, he found it a little weird how Cassie could find someone to love her after all that's happened, but now seeing Aiden in the girl and with the baby's name after a former Ocelot… it actually made _sense._

"Don't sound so surprised, Jesse." Cassie began to defend her husband. "He may have been an idiot, but he's _my_ idiot now."

"Woah, Cass-" Aiden laughs, his arms going around her waist. "He's got every right to be surprised that I even managed to find you."

Cassie huffed, puffing some hair from her eyes.

"Okay, fine."

"Thank you." Aiden kissed Cassie's cheek, making her chuckle a little. (The brunet was growing a bit of a stubble of a beard, which tickled each time he kissed his wife or children.) "Jesse, I'm pretty sure Cassie already introduced our kids, so uh…"

"You said you became a writer, right?"

"I never actually published a book, but I, uh.. resorted, to bedtime stories when these kiddos were born. Anyways, uh, that's not what I wanted to see you about." Aiden glanced back at Cassie, who nodded encouragingly. "Can we, uh… talk? There are quite a few things I'd like to know since I've last seen you."

"Uh… yeah, sure." Jesse nodded, making a 180 turn and going off down towards the Beacon again.

"I'll be back." Aiden told Cassie, kissing her cheek again before leaving once more.


	9. Bonus Two

**Bonus of le bonus don't judge me ;-;**

Aiden saw the small house in the distance before he spotted his old friend on it's porch.

The house itself was a wooden-type, in the one and only creative pattern by no one other than Lukas himself.

The brunet slowed his horse to a stop, looking in front of him to find little Lizzie making funny faces to smol Gill. (Jordan decided to stay behind to help Cassie decorate their new place and continue unpacking.)

"Ooh, is that Lukas's place?" Lizzie asks, pointing to the house. Gee, they've been riding towards it for minutes now and only _then_ does she notice it?

(Guess who's gonna need glasses like her mum lolololol)

Aiden noticed a tree with a strong, sturdy branch sticking out. He decided that it would make a great post to tie the horse to.

"Stay up there for a moment, and hold on tight, okay?" Lizzie nodded in reply to her father's words, holding Gill close with one arm and grasping the saddle with the other hand. Aiden proceeds to lead the horse towards the tree, and tied him to the branch.

"Alright, come on." Aiden reached up and brought his daughter down easily as she was still holding the small brunet boy. "I'll take him."

"Okay, I want to see the pretty flowers!" Lizzie pointed to the tulips and roses in the small garden by the house, accompanied by other flowers.

"Go ahead, but don't go over the fence. I don't know if Lukas will take lightly to a kid rummaging his garden, even if he knows said kid's dad."

"Okay." Lizzie nodded and went to lean on the wooden fence that was semi-surrounded by the house to look over at all the flowers.

"Uh, hello?" Aiden heard a familiar voice call out. "Do you need any help, sir?" He knew it was Lukas.

"Hey, Lukas." Aiden gave the blond a sheepish smile as he turned around, still holding the baby in his arms.

"Aiden?"

"Gee, glad to know you still recognize me with the beard and all." The blond let out a breathless chuckle, making Aiden laugh.

"What are you doing here? I thought you'd still be in Sky City after all this time."

"Well, I _did_ stay in Sky City- well, actually, now it's called Egg City, they kept up with the egg shapes and everything but it's all on land now- for a little bit. Then I moved to a separate world. Maya and Gill voted to stay in Egg City, so I was on my own. Shortly after my move, I met Cassie. She said she thinks you'd remember her-"

"Cassie? 'The White Pumpkin' Cassie Rose?"

"Well, she's Cassie Mercer now. And I highly suggest you don't call her 'The White Pumpkin' around myself or her- we're trying to leave the past behind completely." Aiden warned, and Lukas nodded.

"Cassie.. Mercer?"

"Yeah. You, uh… wanna meet some of the kids?"

"Kids?"

"The little princess over by your flower patch, her name's Lizzie. Her older brother, Jordan, wanted to stay behind to help Mum. He figured there may be a next time to meeting you." Aiden paused, looking down at the baby boy in his arms. "And this is Gill."

"Gill? As in-"

"Yes, I named my kid after our bud." Aiden laughs again, semi-awkwardly. Lukas's eyes wandered down to the small baby boy. There was the tuft of Aiden's dark brown hair on top of his head and his big celery green eyes were wide open, staring up at Lukas curiously.

"Can I, uh… can I hold him?" Lukas asks sheepishly, rubbing at the back of his neck as he did so.

"Yeah, sure." Aiden nodded, handing the baby over to Lukas.

Lukas smiled down at the kiddo.

"Aiden- it's quite safe to say I missed the old you. Before the incidents."

"I'm aiming to be better than that- to set a good example for these kids. I've got a family to take care of. So I'm going to do exactly that the whole way through. And I may need your help with that at some points…

So if you'd like to be Uncle Lukas instead of just Lukas... " Aiden grinned. "Be my guest." Lukas grinned, looking down at the child.

"Hey, buddy. It's your Uncle Lukas." he cooed, and Gill was reaching up for the neatly kept head of blond hair Lukas still had and Lukas laughs a little, making Aiden laugh as well.

 **La Termina**


End file.
